The moment everyone saw them, Shen Liu and her son were stunned.
They hadn’t expected this mother-and-son pair to be so vicious—paying ten taels of silver to dismiss the eldest’s family and yet still plotting to wipe them out completely.
Shen Yongtian had just had the hay removed from his mouth when he crawled, kneeling, to the old village chief:“Village Chief, we didn’t mean to kill anyone. It was my mother—she was worried about my eldest brother, so she wanted to see if they were doing well.”
“Yes, Village Chief, my mother couldn’t sleep worrying about my eldest brother. She just wanted to check on him, and yet we were treated like thieves,” Shen Liu wailed while slyly defending herself.
The old village chief, already trembling with anger at Shen Liu and her son, scolded them while glaring at their crying faces:“Shut up! This isn’t your turn to speak.”
“You two really have some nerve, coming at night with knives to check on someone!”“After severing ties with them, you still dare to claim you were worried about your eldest son? I think you came to steal and kill!”“Didn’t expect it was you! Coming in the middle of the night, surely you had evil intentions.”
The villagers were furious at the mother and son’s shamelessness and began accusing Shen Liu and Shen Yongtian one after another.
“Anzi, search the second son first,” the old village chief ordered Shen Yong’an.
Shen Yong’an stepped forward and found a love-sick incense and a knife on Shen Yongtian. (The knife had been planted on him by Shen Yong’an after Shen Yongtian had been beaten.)
“Second Uncle, look! This incense, and this knife—they’re proof they meant to kill someone,” Shen Yong’an said angrily.
“No! Brother, Mother only told me to steal silver, I never meant to kill! The knife was just to pry the door. Please spare us!” Shen Yongtian, terrified at the accusation of attempted murder, immediately confessed everything.
Seeing her son had confessed, Shen Liu dared not speak further and slunk to the side like a frightened quail.
The village chief looked at the incense and knife, sighed, and said to Shen Yong’an:“The incident happened in your household. Anzi, how do you want to handle it?”
Shen Yong’an glanced at Shen Yu and replied, “Attempted murder is a grave crime. We should report them to the authorities tomorrow.”
Shen Liu froze at the mention of sending them to the officials, even for attempted murder. She rushed forward, knocking her head against the chief’s knees in desperate pleading:“Second Uncle, we’re family—please forgive us! We know our mistake and will stay far away from the eldest’s family. Please, spare us!” She bled on her forehead after a few knocks.
Shen Yongtian, terrified, also knelt and begged:“Big Brother, I wasn’t myself. Mother forced me! Please spare me! I’ll serve you for life, just let me live!”
Shen Yong’an, disgusted, kicked him away:“You didn’t plan to let us go just now.”“Now you beg for mercy. Did you even think about what stealing Anzi’s silver would mean? How will their family survive winter?”“You’ve blocked their future, and you still have the nerve to plead?”
The villagers couldn’t stand it and began shouting curses at them.
“But if we report them, our village’s reputation will be ruined. People will think we harbor cruel, heartless people. It will affect future marriages. Better to just beat them some more,” a villager whispered.
“Yes, with such wicked scoundrels, who would marry into our village?” another worried parent agreed.
The old village chief calmed down. Reporting them could tarnish the village’s reputation and reflect poorly on him as its leader. He looked at Shen Yong’an and reluctantly said:“Anzi, can you think of another way to punish them?”
Shen Yong’an understood the chief’s meaning. He glanced at Shen Yu, who signaled appropriately and spoke:“Second Grandfather, it’s okay not to report them. Since it happened in our household, let us handle it ourselves.”
The old village chief nodded.“Alright. How do you propose to handle it?”
“Simple. One arm each,” Shen Yu said calmly.
The old village chief shuddered slightly but, after a moment’s thought, agreed:“Very well. One arm each, and that settles the matter.”
Shen Yu didn’t wait for Shen Liu and her son to react. She stepped forward and struck each of their arms with her foot. With two sharp “cracks,” their bones snapped. Shen Liu and her son rolled on the ground in agony, wailing through the night.
Everyone was stunned by Shen Yu’s ferocity. When had she become so ruthless?
Seeing the villagers’ shocked faces, Shen Yu smiled and explained:“You’ve probably noticed I’m not the same as before. A person who has died once is bound to change. The day I fell into the soy paste vat, I had already died. My soul went to the underworld, but the King of Hell said my time wasn’t up and allowed me to return.
Our ancestors, unwilling to see our descendants suffer, asked the King of Hell to assign me a powerful master. Everything I know comes from my master. He also said he would protect me. I studied with him for years, but when I woke, my mother claimed I had only been unconscious for a day and night.”
Seeing the villagers’ astonished eyes and dropped jaws, Shen Yu continued calmly:“At first, I thought it was a dream. But after waking, I realized I had indeed changed. I’m not sure how yet, but I believe I’ll understand in time.”
Most villagers believed Shen Yu. The contrast was too stark. Before, she had been timid and quiet; now she was confident, decisive, and ruthless. In their small world, they revered divine power—if she hadn’t truly gained some extraordinary skill, how could she be so formidable?
A few villagers doubted, but seeing Shen Liu and her son writhing on the ground, they quickly shut their mouths.
Shen Liu screamed at Shen Yu:“You’re a monster, possessed by some evil spirit! Stop talking about ancestors and the King of Hell! Don’t believe her! Burn her! Burn the monster!”
Shen Yu stepped forward and kicked Shen Liu in the waist:“You old witch! If I were a monster, you’d have been skinned and dismembered long ago. How could you still harm my family?”
Shen Liu, in pain, could no longer speak, glaring at Shen Yu with reddened eyes full of hatred.